Psalm 139:17 to 18 (NIV) ~ How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.

Psalm 139:17 to 18 (NIV) ~ How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.

The hush of wind brings a calm upon the waters at Hough beach on Tiree, a little Island just off the coast of Scotland. The beautiful white sand fills the beach where not one footprint can be seen on the stretch of such a peaceful place. It is as if the world has never soiled nor tampered with this hidden treasure. As I gaze upon the beach from the top of the nearby dune, I can see the panoramic view of crest shaped beach as the waves gently roll in and out over the sand. To each side of the beach there are small mounts too small to be called hills, yet big enough to give shelter, which hides this forgotten paradise. I cannot believe how peaceful this place is. I take my shoes and socks off and start to walk down from the dune onto the sand. The sand feels soft and warm as my toes sink into the surface of little mattresses of pure white grains of sand. The wind gently picks up and a breeze blows through my hair. The rhythm of the waves sounds like a sweet lullaby sung over and over again. I gaze towards the sky that is a perfect light blue, with two snow coloured white clouds floating in the distance, as if without a care in the world. My gaze then looks out to the ocean and I can see where the sea seems to meet the sky. From this place I can shout as loud as I want in prayer, or sing at the top of my voice in worship and praise to my Saviour Jesus and only the nearby birds would turn to look where the sound is coming from.

Within my shoulder bag I have my Bible, pencil, note pad, camera, towel, some bottled water, fruit and some sandwiches. I find a spot to set my bag down and walk forward towards the sea. When I get to edge of the seashore I let the cold water from the waves roll over my feet. How beautiful does that feel, wow! Lost in thoughts and just pouring out my heart to God, I decide to take a walk along the seashore with my feet in the water. I must have walked for about twenty minutes to one end of the beach, and then twenty minutes to the middle from where I started and then a farther twenty minutes to the other side and back again, while my shoulder bag lay unattended and secure on a beach where I was the only human being.

When I eventually walked back to where my bag was sitting, I had a refreshing sip of water; I pulled out my towel and placed it like a mat on the sand to lay upon, and reached in the bag for my Bible and note pad. As I opened my Bible to continue my personal daily devotional readings, this verse of Scripture stood out from Psalm 139:17 to 18 (NIV), “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.”

Just then I scooped up a handful of sand with my right hand. As I tried to hold as much as I could in one hand, I could imagine how many grains of sand rested on my palm and along my fingers. I thought to myself, “I cannot count how many grains of sand I have in my hand, let alone how many grains of sand fill this beach. How vast is the sum of love, good and amazing thoughts God has towards me today? How precious to me, indeed, are your thoughts oh God, towards me.”

My friend, now picture yourself sitting all alone on Hough beach at Tiree, this little Scottish island, a place of such beauty and peace, where God speaks to your heart and says, “As this beach is filled with millions upon millions, ten million times ten million, of little grains of white sand, so many are my thoughts towards you of love, mercy, grace, peace, healing, acceptance and kindness. My child, I love you with a love that will not let you go, my future for you is filled with good things. Right now, if you look up towards the heaven, you can see me smiling upon you, because I am in love with you.”